Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 38 (2014) 747753

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/rser

Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) of photovoltaic panels: A review

Sacha Gerbinet n, Sandra Belboom, Anglique Lonard
Department of Chemical Engineering, Processes and Sustainable Development, University of Lige, 3 Alle de la Chimie, 4000 Lige, Belgium

art ic l e i nf o

a b s t r a c t

Article history:
Received 21 January 2014
Received in revised form
3 June 2014
Accepted 6 July 2014
Available online 24 July 2014

The environmental impact of photovoltaic panels (PVs) is an extensively studied topic, generally assessed
using the Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) methodology. Due to this large amount of papers, a review seems
necessary to have a clear view of the work already done and what is still to be done.
The objective of this paper is to present an accurate overview of the LCA already performed on PVs.
The analyses are classied by panel type and by impact assessment methodology. When available the
information relative to the PV system (efciency, localization, etc.) is also summarized.
The following main observations are noted:

Keywords:
Life Cycle Analysis
Photovoltaic panels
Review
Environmental impacts

Silicon panels are the mostly studied, thin layers on a lesser extent, while new panel types, such as
organic, are not yet considered.

Regarding the study scope, Balance Of System (BOS) components, although inuential, are often

omitted and their characteristics (efciency, etc.) are sometimes not provided. This is the same for the
End of life.
Most studies focus on energy related indicators such as the Energy Payback Time (EPBT) and
indicators relative to climate change such as CO2 emissions. When impact assessment methodologies
are used, it is generally Eco-Indicator99 and sometimes CML. But, results are, unfortunately,
sometimes expressed only after normalization

Finally, this review underlines the necessity to achieve further LCA on photovoltaic panels, as many
aspects are still in need of evaluation, such as the electronic properties of the panel or BOS components.
& 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Contents
1.
2.
3.

4.

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 748
The LCA methodology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 748
LCA of PV systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 748
3.1.
Silicon PVs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 748
3.1.1.
Conventional LCA. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 748
3.1.2.
Non-conventional LCA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 750
3.2.
Thin layers PVs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 751
3.3.
Miscellaneous PV types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 751
3.3.1.
Energy and emissions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 751
3.3.2.
Impact assessment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 752
3.4.
The BOS components. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 752
3.5.
Others. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 752
Discussion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 752

Corresponding author. Tel.: 32 4 366 35 47.

E-mail addresses: Saicha.Gerbinet@ulg.ac.be (S. Gerbinet), sbelboom@ulg.ac.be (S. Belboom), A.Leonard@ulg.ac.be (A. Lonard).
URL: http://www.chimapp.ulg.ac.be/ (S. Gerbinet).

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2014.07.043
1364-0321/& 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

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S. Gerbinet et al. / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 38 (2014) 747753

5. Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 752
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 753

1. Introduction
The use of photovoltaic panels (PVs) for electricity production has
rapidly increased in recent years, even though their environmental
impacts are still not fully determined. A lot of work has recently been
undertaken in this respect, generally with the use of the Life Cycle
Analysis (LCA) methodology. A wide variety of results is obtained,
mainly due to the importance of the PV system (module type,
efciency, etc.) and the way the methodology is applied (functional
unit, boundary, etc.). A summary of the main results of these studies is
presented in this paper.
Reviews on LCA of PVs have already been published [13].
However, they are about specic panel type or specic environmental
indicators. Peng et al. (2013) [3] investigated only energy consumption,
Energy Payback Time (EPBT) and global warming potential (GWP). The
study of Sumper et al. (2011) [1] is focused on emissions of CO2/kW h
and EPBT, and Sherwani et al. (2010) [2] only consider silicon-based
panels. The aim of this paper is to provide an up-to-date review on
LCA of PVs of all the panel types, describing the panels and underlining
the methodology used.
The rst section provides a brief denition of the LCA methodology.
The second part concerns the review where results are divided by PV
types to allow comparison among studies. Some studies compare
different PV types and are cited separately. The last part focuses on the
Balance of the System (BOS) components. These are all the components of a PV system other than the panel itself.

2. The LCA methodology

The LCA methodology evaluates and quanties the environmental
impacts for every stage of a product's life. The ISO 14040 and 14044
standards [4,5] provide general guidances to perform a LCA. There are
four interdependent stages: (1) goal and scope denition, (2) Life Cycle
Inventory (LCI), (3) impacts assessment, and (4) results interpretation.
During the rst stage the functional unit and the system boundary are
determined. In the second stage, the full life cycle is decomposed into
elementary steps and for each step the energy and material balances
are performed. All the environmental impacts are evaluated in the
third stage: for each ow from the LCI, a specic characterization
factor determines its impact in the studied impact category. A specic
score is nally obtained for each impact category studied. Normalization can also be used. In this case, the results are expressed in
relation to a reference, such as the mean impact of an European
citizen. This can help in determining the categories that have the most
impact, although normalization should be used with caution.
In this review, results of previous works are summarized. Assumptions relative to the LCA, as e.g. functional unit, system boundaries or
impact methodology are also examined.

3. LCA of PV systems
The rst LCA publications on PVs appeared in the mid-1970s [6,7],
but are now outdated considering the achieved improvements of PV
technology. This review focuses on studies published after 1990.
3.1. Silicon PVs
Crystalline silicon modules are the most extensively studied PV
type since they are the most largely used. The studies summarized

here are divided between conventional, i.e. environmental LCA, and

nonconventional LCA (social LCA, cost LCA, etc.). The main results of
the conventional LCA of silicon PVs are presented in Table 1. This table
also presents the mains hypotheses taken into account for the LCA
analysis.
3.1.1. Conventional LCA
The indicators about energy balance, such as the Energy Payback Time (EPBT) are extensively used in LCA of energy production
devices. Greenhouse gas (GHG) emission is also a widely used
indicator. Other studies use more exhaustive impact assessment
methodologies such as CML [8] or Eco-Indicator99 [9]. To illustrate
this point, the studies are classied regarding the indicators used
for the impact assessment.
3.1.1.1. Energy and emissions. Pacca et al. [10] compared
polycrystalline silicon PVs (efciency of 13%) with amorphous
silicon (efciency of 6.3%) in an installation of 33 kW h on the
roof of the University of Michigan. The Net Energy Ratio (NER), the
EPBT, and the CO2 emissions are calculated. The NER of
polycrystalline modules is 2.7 and the EPBT reaches 7.4 year
versus a ratio of 5.14 and 3.15 years for amorphous silicon. For
the CO2 emissions, the latter obtains 34.3 g CO2-eq/kW h versus
72.4 for the former. Sensitivity analyses are also performed about
panel efciency and energy saving during fabrication. Moreover,
the advantages of using photovoltaic electricity during panel
production are underscored.
Stoppato [11] has examined polycrystalline silicon PVs (efciency
of 16%), with results calculated for several countries by taking into
account their irradiation and their electric mix. In Belgium, the EBPT
is 6.241 year and the avoided CO2 emissions are 0.1954 tCO2-eq/kWp.
LCA of a 200 kWp polycrystalline silicon PVs installed in Spain
is performed [1], taking into account steps from raw material
extraction to electricity generation. The functional unit is the
production of 1 kW h electricity. The EPBT is between 3.5 and
5 years, depending on the irradiation. Most of the energy consumption can be linked to module production step. A comparison
with other PV types shows that thin layer PVs have the smallest
energy consumption and that monocrystalline silicon PVs produce
lower emissions than the studied panel. The ecological footprint
method is also applied to the system.
PVs with tracking systems have also been studied by Perpian
et al. [12]. They make a review and then add their own data.
Modules are in silicon with an efciency of 12.4%. Systems
connected to the grid are studied and the environmental advantages of using tracking systems are demonstrated: the EPBT of the
studied system is always under 5 years.
Facade-integrated PVs have been examined. In their study,
Perez et al. [13] studied a Faade integrated PV system with
waste-steam mono-Si installed in New-York. The functional unit
is the production of 1 kW h. The BOS components are included and
the performances are measured in situ. Two scenarios are considered: in the rst one, the wafers, coming from waste stream
have no environmental impact; in the second one the wafers are
produced specically for the studied system and are included in
the LCI. The EPBT in the rst scenario is less than 1 year and in the
second is 3.8 years. The GWP calculated by the IPCC GWP100a
methodology is respectively 10.2 and 60.5 g CO2/kW h.
Sometimes, PVs are compared with other renewable electricity
production systems as it is the case in 2005 with the comparison

S. Gerbinet et al. / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 38 (2014) 747753

749

Table 1
Summary of the mains results about silicon PV.
Study Panel type

PV system

Country

[1]

Poly.

Roof-mounted

Spain

[10]

Roof-mounted

US

[11]

Poly. and
amorphous
Poly.

Roof-mounted

[12]

Crystalline

Tracking system

[13]

Mono.

Facade-integrated

[14]

Poly. and mono. Roof and faade

Switzerland

[15]

Poly.

Ground-mounted

[16]

Poly.

Tracking system

[17]

Mono.

[18]

Poly.

Building Integrated Spain

Concentrated
Roof-mounted
Netherlands

[19]

Poly.

Ground-mounted

Germany

12.5%

[20]

Mono.

Tracking system

Italy

13.8%

[23]

Poly. and mono. Roof-mounted

South-European
locations

[24]

Crystalline

From 11.5
to 14%
15%

[25]

Amorphous/
nanocrystalline

10%

Roof-integrated

Severals locations
(EU, Austria, US)
South Europe and
North Africa
US

Modules
efciency

From
6.3 to 13%
16%
12.4%

FU

Boundaries

Methodology

Mains results

1 kW h

Production (BOS),
installation and use
Production (BOS) and
use
Production and use

EPBT

EPBT 3.55 years

EPBT CO2

EPBT: 3.157.4 year CO2:

34.272.4 g/kW h
EPBT 3,57 year CO2:
50800 g/kW h
EPBT o 5 year

1 kW h
2

0.65 m
panel
1 kWp
1 kW h

Italy

From 13.2
to 14.8%
14.4%

1 kWp

Spain

13.1%

1 kW h

Netherlands

3 kWp

Production
use
Production
use
Production
use
Production
EoL
Production
EoL
Production

EPBT CO2

(BOS) and

EPBT

(BOS) and

EPBT IPCC (GWP)

(BOS) and

Eco-Indicator 99 EPBT

(BOS) to

Eco-Indicator 99

(BOS) to

IPCC 2007 (GWP) EPBT

Eco-Indicator 99
Eco-Indicator 99 (Norm)
EPS 2000 (Norm)
Eco-Indicator 99 (Norm)

1 kW h

EPBT 3.8 year

GWP 10.2 g/kWh
EPBT 36 year
GWP 136100 g/kW h
CO2 (with EcoIndicator):8.74 g/kW h
EPBT 1.451.5 years

Production (BOS) to
EoL
1 kW h Production (BOS) and
use
1 MW h Production and use

Eco-Indicator 99

GWP 0.063 kg/kW h

Eco-Indicator 99

1 kWp

Production and use

CML 2000

1 kW h

Production

1 kW h

Production (BOS) and

use

EPBT CO2 CML 2000

(Norm)
ReCiPe EPBT

EPBT 5.5 years

GWP 44.7 g/kW h.
EPBT: 1.72.7 year CO2:
3045 g/kW h
Direct CO2
emissions o o indirect
EPBT 2.3 year

FU Functional Unit. Boundaries: (BOS): the BOS components are included in the LCA EoL: End of Life. Methodology: (Norm): the results are only expressed after
normalization CO2 CO2 emissions calculation.

of a PV with a wind turbine [14]. Thirteen PVs are considered, ten

of which are designed for small scale installations. Mono and
polycrystalline silicon modules are taken into account, their
average efciencies being 14.8 and 13.2%, respectively. EcoIndicator 99 is used and the EPBT is determined. Depending on
PV type and localization, the GHG emissions are between 39 and
100 g CO2-eq/kW h and the EPBT between 3 and 6 years for the
annual mean irradiation in Switzerland (1100 kW h/m2/year).
3.1.1.2. Impact assessment. In this section, papers using an impact
assessment methodology are described (classied by methodology).
The most common methodology is Eco-Indicator99. ReCiPe, which
is the most up-to-date methodology, is not yet largely used.
3.1.1.2.1. Eco-Indicator99. The rst study using Eco-Indicator is
about a PV plant [15]a ground-mounted installation of
1777.48 kWp built with 14.4% efciency modules in Italy. The
boundaries start at ground preparation and nish at the end-oflife (EoL: recycling) including maintenance (replacement of some
BOS components, etc.). Eco-Indicator99 is used to assess environmental impacts. The module production has the most signicant
part in most of the impact categories except for ozone layer and
minerals depletion where electric connections exceed. With normalization, the greatest damage is caused by use of fossil fuels and
exploitation of mineral resources (Resources category), but
impacts on human health are also important, especially relating
to respiratory inorganics and climate change. Finally, the advantages of PVs compared to coal, natural gas or petroleum are
underscored.
The entire life cycle, including EoL, of tracking PV systems is
also studied [16]. The polycrystalline silicon PV's modules used
have an efciency of 13.1%. The functional unit is chosen as the

production of 1 kW h of electricity. With a tracking system, a PV

receives 30% of additional irradiation. The system localization has
a heavy inuence. For example, the CO2 PayBack Time (CO2PBT)
varies between 3.49 and 4.6 years for the same tracking PV system
installed in different Spanish areas. The tracking system itself and
PV type are also inuent. The Eco-Indicator99 methodology is also
used and underlines that the module production is the most
damaging step.
Concentrated PV systems is studied by Menou et al. [17]. They
study a Building Integrated Concentrated PV (BICPV) system
installed in Spain and compare the results with a theoretical
Building Integrated PV (BIPV) system. They use Eco-Indicator99
and EPS 2000 methodologies. The BOS components such as the
installation and transportation are not included. The results
underline that the CPV system represents only more or less 10%
of the environmental impact when the other 90% are due to the
building. The BIPV scheme used instead of the BICPV causes an
increment of about 10 to 13.5% of the environmental impact. With
Eco-indicator99, the total impact score is mostly dominated by
three impact categories: fossil fuels, respiratory inorganics, and
climate change. In the EPS 2000, the three most dominant impact
categories are: depletion of reserves, life expectancy and severe
morbidity. A sensitivity analysis underlines that the higher the
concentration factors, the lower the impact scores.
A comparison between a polycrystalline silicon PV module and
a wind turbine was performed in 2011 using Eco-Indicator99 with
normalization [18]. BOS components and EoL are taken into
account, contrary to most studies. Two possibilities are studied
for the PV EoL: burying the waste in landlls or recycling them.
During the PVs production, the most damaging step is the module
production. The highest impact categories, in decreasing order, are

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S. Gerbinet et al. / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 38 (2014) 747753

fossil fuels depletion, respiratory inorganics effects and minerals

depletion. When both EoL scenarios are compared, an important
reduction of the environmental impact in all categories, except for
fossil fuel depletion, is obtained with recycling (especially for the
respiratory inorganics effects and carcinogen effects). When compared with wind power for the production of 1 kW h of electricity,
PVs have higher environmental impacts, except for ecotoxicity,
land use and minerals depletion when wind turbines are not
recycled. Wind power produces a quarter of the fossil fuel
depletion and half of the respiratory inorganics effects of PVs.
Another study [19] compares polycrystalline silicon PVs (efciency of 12.5%) with an anaerobic digestion plant working with
maize. When looking at GHG emissions, acidication or eutrophication with Eco-Indicator99 methodology, the PVs obtain higher
environmental benets. When co-generation is performed at
the anaerobic digestion plant, its environmental performances
improve but remain lower than those obtain by PVs. Nevertheless,
biogas production is not intermittent and manure or organic
wastes digestion can perform better since they do not require a
dedicated crop.
Finally, a study compares monocrystalline silicon PVs (efciency of 13.8%) ground-mounted with a single-axis tracking
system with thermodynamic cycles [20]. The two installations
are located in Italy. The BOS are not included because there are
very similar for the two plants. The Eco-Indicator99 is used. For
PVs, the greatest environmental impact is related to modules
production. When normalization is used, the use of fossil fuel
and the respiratory inorganics effects give the main contribution
to environmental impact. When compared with thermodynamic
cycles, the PV scenario obtains higher environmental impact
excepted for the following categories: carcinogens, ecotoxicity,
land use and minerals. Both installations are compared with more
accuracy on CO2 emissions and EPBT. In both cases, the thermodynamic cycles perform better. Nevertheless, the EPBT for the PVs
is 5.5 years, which is smaller than its life expectancy.
3.1.1.2.2. CML. Thanks to the CrystalClear project founded by
the European Union and dedicated to the LCA of silicon PVs, an
extensive inventory is available [21]. Eleven industrial plants of
mono (efciency: 14%) or polycrystalline (efciency: 13.2%) silicon
or polycrystalline silicon ribbon (efciency: 11.5%) located in
Europe have been studied. Recommendations for performing LCA
of photovoltaic panel published in 2005 by Fthenakis et al. [22]
have been applied. This LCI [21] has been used one year later in a
LCA performed with the CML2000 methodology [23]. The functional unit is 1 kWp of modules or 1 kW h when comparisons with
other electricity sources are made. The main highlight of this study
is that ribbon modules perform best followed by polycrystalline
modules.
The GHG emissions during polycrystalline silicon modules
(efciency of 15%) production have been calculated by Reich
et al. [24]. They consider only the panel production. The emissions
are divided into direct (from raw materials) and indirect (from
energy consumption) emissions. The latter are clearly more
important and are dominated by electric consumption for the
production. Different energy sources used for panel production are
studied when indirect emissions are investigated. The advantages of using photovoltaic electricity during panel production
are underscored in 7 impact categories after normalization
(GWP100, ozone layer depletion, human toxicity, photochemical
oxidation, acidication, eutrophication and nonrenewable energy).
They probably use the CML methodology but it is not stated
explicitly in the paper. An impact reduction of at least 25% is
obtained compared to the case where the average European
electricity grid mix is used. Finally, horizon 2050 is examined:
the greater the number of installed PVs, the smaller the GHG
emissions.

3.1.1.2.3. ReCiPe. Recently, Mohr et al. [25] have investigated the

environmental impact of a PV using the ReCiPe methodology at
both Midpoint and Endpoint levels. The PV is composed of
amorphous silicon/nanocrystalline silicon (a-Si/nc-Si) with an
efciency of 10%. It has a service life of 20 years and it is installed
in The Netherlands. The BOS components are included (coming
from Ecoinvent database) but not the EoL due to the lack of data.
They are compared with multi-Si PVs with an efciency of 14.4%
and a service life of 30 years. The functional unit is the production
of 1 kW h. For all environmental impact categories, the multi-Si
panel gave the best performance except for photochemical oxidant
formation and terrestrial ecotoxicity. When normalization is
applied at Endpoint level, for the both PV types, the categories
damage to human health due to climate change, human toxicity
and particulate matter formation together account for more than
60% of the overall score. The EPBT is also determined: 2.3 years for
a-Si/n-Si PVs and 3.4 for multi-Si PVs. The contribution of each life
cycle step of a-Si/n-Si PVs to the Primary Energy Demand and to
Climate Change is also determined. Some sensitivity analyses are
performed on energy demand.
Table 1 summarizes the main results of the studies described
below. This allows to underline that, for all the study where it is
calculated, the EPBT for the PVs is always smaller than its life time.
So, in regards to energy consumption, the PVs seem environmental
friendly. The GWP, when calculated, is always smaller than 150 g
CO2-eq/kW h. It is also interesting to have a look at the different
hypothesis made during the LCA. Examination of the results
underlines the importance of systems boundaries denition and
of panel localization. The studies are generally about panel
installed in sunlight area. In regards to systems boundary, only
few studies take into account the End of Life of the PVs and the
BOS component are not always included. Most of the studies
determine the EPBT. Nevertheless, the methodology used is not
always well dened. More, the methodologies used for the LCA are
most of time Eco-Indicator99 or sometime CML but unfortunately,
in some studies the results are only presented after normalization.
Only one study used the ReCiPe methodology.

3.1.2. Non-conventional LCA

Some nonconventional LCA are performed on silicon PVs. For
example, a hybrid LCA of polycrystalline silicon PVs with an
efciency of 13.2% was performed [26] in 2010. The goal of this
methodology is to reduce the error due to lack of data by using an
economic approach to complete the LCI. The obtained results are
60% higher than those obtained with a conventional LCA for
energy consumption, EPBT and CO2PBT. Sensitivity analyses are
performed on localization.
Another study [27] estimates the cost related to GHG, SO2, NOx
and PM emissions associated to PVs installed in China. The caused
damage is used to estimate the damage cost. They nd that the cobenet of using PVs is 0.167 yuan/kW h. They estimate that in
2027 the cost of PVs will reach the same as cost of coal, but if cobenets are taken into account, the cost can be reached earlier, in
2023. Sensitivity analyses show a heavy inuence of the
damages cost.
A meta-analysis on LCA about GHG emissions for silicon PVs
was performed in 2012 [28]. Only 13 studies meet the whole
criteria (original results, consistency with the application, etc.)
xed by the authors. The module efciency is of 13.2% or 14.0%,
depending on module type. The average value for GHG emissions
is 57 gCO2-eq but the harmonized average determined by metaanalysis is 45. The latter is calculated by adjusting the result
regarding the different PV properties (efciency, irradiation, etc.).
Only one study estimates PVs sustainability by performing
LCSA [29]. Silicon polycrystalline PVs produced in Germany or in

S. Gerbinet et al. / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 38 (2014) 747753

Italy in 2008 and 2009 are considered. The functional unit is

chosen as the production of 1 m2 of PV since all panels have same
properties. In the LCA part, Eco-Indicator99 is used at normalization level. The Italian modules obtained the best performances
except for some categories such as ecotoxicity. In the Life Cycle
Cost (LCC), the German modules produced in 2009 are the best.
Social aspects are studied with a workers view (discrimination,
children work, etc.) and Italian modules performed better. A tool to
represent these results is also described.
3.2. Thin layers PVs
There are very few studies dedicated to thin layers PVs. As
there are different types of thin layers PVs, they are here classied
accordingly.
The rst LCA on these types of PVs was made in 2005 [30] on
CdTe modules with an efciency of 9%. LCI is performed for the First
Solar plant in US taking into account steps from raw material
extraction to PV installation including the BOS components. The
EPBT is 1.2 year and the GHG emissions are 23.6 gCO2-eq/kW h. This
panel type has smaller environmental impact than silicon ones.
A recent study [31] examines, using LCA, a new EoL treatment
based on mechanical process and recycling system for thin lm
PVs. Only the EoL is considered in this study and a CdTe module is
considered. The Impact 2002 methodology is used. The results
underline the environmental advantages of this new EoL treatment. It allows environmental benets in all environmental
impact categories except for Ionizing Radiation and Land Occupation. The environmental advantages of the new system are mainly
due to the recovery of glass and cadmium telluride (CdTe). The
results are also presented after normalization. By comparing with
the old process, the environmental advantages of the studied
technology are clearly underlined. Indeed, the old technology
obtains worst environmental impacts in all the impact categories.
The GaInP/GaAs thin layer panels with an efciency of 28.5%
are also studied [32]. The electricity used for PVs production
comes from same PVs installed in Western Europe. Ten impacts
categories (CML 2001) are considered and the advantage of using
photovoltaic energy during PVs production is underscored in all
the categories except for toxicity.
The future of PVs thin layers is studied by LCA [33] taking into
account land and materials' availabilities as the environmental
impacts, as well as cost. The present efciency of the module is
13.2% but different scenarios are considered for future PVs.
In a recent study [34], a process allowing the reduction of the
consumption of silane during the production two thin-lms PV
types (a hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) based PV and a
tandem a-Si:H with a thin lm technology based PV) is especially
examined. This new process allows the reduction of waste of
silane from 85% to 17%. The functional unit is the use of 1 kg of
silane. The IPCC 2007 GWP 100a and the energy consumption are
determined. In the case of the a-Si:H PV, the energy consumption
is reduced, by using the recycling process, from 1146 MJ without
recycling to 409 MJ per kg of silane used. The GWP diminishes
from 61.3 to 22 kg CO2-eq.
Concentration systems coupled with thin layers PVs are also
studied [35]. Cells are composed of GaInP/GaInAs/Ge with an
efciency of 37% and the system is installed in Phoenix, USA.
The LCA includes steps from raw material extraction to EoL
(recycling) including maintenance (materials used in scheduled
maintenance). EPBT is always smaller than 1 year. The primary
energy demand is mostly related to production (88.3%) and the
maintenance stage represents 6.7%. In the production step, the
energy imbedded in the solvents used for cell production contributes to more than 50%. The GHG emissions are between 22 and
27 gCO2-eq/kW h. The land transformation is divided between

751

indirect land transformation, related to raw material production,

(32 m2/GWh) and the direct one (266 m2/GWh). For water usages,
the indirect component dominates 682 L/MWh for indirect
water consumption compared to 26 L/MWh for direct use. The
impact of a change in life expectancy is also studied.
3.3. Miscellaneous PV types
Some studies are about most common technologies and so
make average for different PV types to determine their average
environmental impact. The energy balance and the energy is the
most widely used criteria to make comparisons, although others
impact assessment methodologies have been used.
3.3.1. Energy and emissions
For example, in 2006, environmental impacts of the most
standard PVs (roof or facade mounted) is determined for 41 cities
in 26 OECD countries [36]. EPBT, Energy Return Factor (ERF) and
potential for CO2 emissions mitigation are used as indicators. In
Brussels, 3.2, 8.4 and 5.9 are respectively obtained for rooftopmounted PVs whereas the values are 4.7, 5.4 and 4 for facade ones.
Globally, EBPT is between 4.7 and 1.6 years for rooftop-mounted
PVs and between 2.7 and 4.7 for facades. ERF is between 8 and 17.9
(roof) or 5.4 and 10.1 (facades) and CO2 emissions mitigation
can be, when the best case is considered, up to 40 (roof) or
23 (facades) tons of CO2 per kWp installed.
Four PV types were studied by LCA in 2008 [37] silicon
ribbon, silicon mono or polycrystalline and CdTe thin layer. Silicon
module data come from CrystalClear project whereas for CdTe,
they come from Fthenakis et al. [30] (efciency of 9%). GHG, SO2
and NOx emissions are determined and, for the rst time, heavy
metals emissions are studied. Emissions are divided between
direct emissions and indirect. Direct emissions are the emissions
occurring at the production plant whereas indirect emissions are
related to downstream and upstream processes such as energy
generation. Indirect heavy metal emissions, resulting from fossil
fuel combustion are calculated for each PV types, whereas the
direct emissions are only determined for thin layers panels.
Nevertheless, the latter are 10 times smaller than the former.
Moreover, cadmium emissions occurring when PVs are used to
electricity production are smaller than for traditional electric
sources. Finally, use of PV electricity during panel production is
also studied. Another study [38] about the same PV types obtains
same results for GHG, NOx, SOx and heavy metals emissions. The
efciencies of the silicon ribbon, silicon poly- or monocrystalline
modules are 11.5, 13.2 and 14% respectively and the efciency of
the CdTe module is 9%. Concentration systems are also considered.
A risk assessment concludes that the highest risk during PVs life
cycle is related to toxic chemical substances used during modules
production. Nevertheless, risks associated with PVs are smaller
than for other electricity sources. The future expected improvements in PVs sector are also mentioned.
Other studies examine PVs future such as the work of Raugei
and Frankl [39] which starts by examining the different PV types
for large or small scale installations: crystalline silicon (mono,
multi and with efciency if 14, 13 and 11% respectively) and thin
lms (CdTe, amorphous silicon and CIS with efciency f 10, 7 and
10% respectively). Then, future evolutions in terms of costs, market
penetration and environmental performance are determined.
Three scenarios are considered within LCA. New works are
performed, using this study as a basis [40] in view of determining
the Energy Yield Ratio on a PV installation and comparing it with
an heavy oil power plant.
PVs are also compared with traditional electricity sources [41].
Silicon cells data come from Wild-Scholten and Alsema (2005)

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S. Gerbinet et al. / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 38 (2014) 747753

[21] whereas data about thin layer cells (CdTe with an efciency of
9%) are from Fthenakis et al. [30] and BOS components data come
from Mason et al. [42]. Thanks to the used of PVs, the GHG
emissions are reduced compared with petrol, coal or natural gas,
but are equal when looking at nuclear.

Not surprisingly, assimilation of the electricity consumption at the

energy production prole to reduce storage needs is the most efcient
way to reduce the environmental impact.

3.3.2. Impact assessment

A study about 16 PV types with different mounting systems, used
to update Ecoinvent database was published in 2008 [43]. The average
module efciency is 16%. BOS components largely inuence the
results. Different PV types are compared using the Eco-Indicator99
method. CdTe thin layer PVs obtain the worst score and CIS the best
one. EBPT is between 2.5 and 4.9 years in Switzerland when the
different PV types are considered. A potential GHG emission mitigation
map is made for Europe.
In the last study about comparison of different PV types connected
to the grid [44], six different PVs with different efciency types are
examined (silicon mono or polycrystalline, amorphous silicon, CdTe,
CIS or Si thin layer) in low solar irradiation regions. Thin layer modules
obtain a Cumulative Energy Demand (CED) smaller than 30,000 MJ/
kWp and so perform better than silicon modules. EPBT is always
smaller than 5 years. With Eco-Indicator99, CdTe modules obtain the
worst single score. A comparison is made with traditional energy
sources and the advantage of using PVs is underscored except when
the Individualist weighting is used with Eco-Indicator99 since a short
term perspective is considered in which fossil fuels combustion has
limited impact.

Silicon modules are the most extensively studied PV type because

they are currently the most largely used. Thin layer PVs are also a welldocumented topic. Moreover, the studied panels are generally installed
in sunlight areas. In mean, the thin layer PVs in CdTe obtain better
performances in term of EPBT and GHG emissions than silicon based
one. Only one study uses a more completed methodology to make this
comparison (Eco-Indicator99) [44] and in this case, silicon modules
perform better. Nevertheless, when the EPBT is calculated, it is always
smaller than the life expectancy of the PVs, for all panel types.
It means than in view of energy consumption PVs seem environmental friendly.
When PVs are compared with traditional electricity sources, their
environmental advantages are underscored for the impact categories
that are mostly considered (Energy consumption, GWP, etc.). This is
not always the case if PVs are compared with other renewable electric
sources such as wind turbines.
Some parameters that can greatly affect the results of PV LCA are
also underlined thanks to this review:

4. Discussion

The electronic performances, such as the efciency of the PVs,

3.4. The BOS components

Some studies focus on the environmental impact of BOS components even if they are often neglected. A detailed study relative to the
BOS components of a 3.5 MWp silicon polycrystalline PV system
installed in Springerville (USA) is performed by Mason et al. [42]
and the results are compared with those of a similar installation based
in Serre (Italy). The Springerville installation used polycrystalline
module with an efciency of 12.2%. It has been realised to optimize
costs, materials and works. So, primary energy consumption for the
building phase of the whole system is between 526 and 542 MJ/m2
70 % smaller than the Serre one and EPBT is 0.21 year.
BOS components of different PVs (rooftop-mounted on existing or
new roof and ground-mounted PVs) with silicon polycrystalline
modules (polycrystalline with an efciency between 13.2 and 16%
and ribbon with efciency between 11.5 and 15%) are compared in the
study of Alsema and Wild-Scholten (2006) [23]. GWP and CED are
calculated. PVs integrated in roof obtain the lowest impacts.
These studies underline the importance of including BOS
components in the scope of the studies.
3.5. Others
Some studies are not LCA strictly speaking but are clearly
related. In 2009, a review of LCA studies relative to PVs is
performed [2]. Nevertheless, this study is mostly about silicon
PVs. In 2013 [3], another review about the same subject has been
published. All the PV types are investigated but only energy
consumption, EPBT and global warming potential are considered.
They conclude that in the current state of the art, the PVs are
environmentally-friendly in these impacts categories.
In 2009, the International Energy Agency has edited a report
giving advice about the way to perform PV LCA [45], which is
heeded by some of the studies included in this review.
Finally, the inuence of consumption proles on PV environmental
impacts is analyzed [46]. The studied PV system operates without
connection to the grid so the need for storage has to be considered.

connection type, working voltage, or panel degradation have a high

inuence on the panel performance and therefore on the results.
The efciency is generally provided in the examined papers but it
is not always the case for the others parameters making results
comparison difcult.
BOS components are integrated only in the most recent studies,
but their impacts seem non negligible. Moreover, their performance has also a high inuence on the results. There are general
expressed by a performance ratio but it is unfortunately not
included in all the studies. When included, it is generally between
75 and 80%.
The EoL of the PVs is generally not included due to the lack of data
in this eld. Nevertheless, it can have a non-negligible inuence on
the results [18].
Studies are principally performed for high irradiation areas. Nevertheless, the irradiation is also a critical parameter [47].
When looking at the used indicators, GHG emissions are generally
considered such as energy consumption. But, the latter is not
always expressed in the same way (CED, EPBT, fossil fuel depletion,
etc.). Eco-Indicator99 is also commonly used and sometimes CML.
Unfortunately, the results are sometimes provided only after
normalization. When several impact categories are used (like with
Eco-Indicator99), the results can be different than by using only
energy consumption or GWP related indicators [20].

5. Conclusions
Even if there is a high number of papers dealing with LCA of
PVs, this review shows some shortcomings in the topic due to
incomplete studies and lack of published details about the system
and the methodology. Therefore many results strongly differ and
comparisons are difcult.
As a general guideline, the performance of the studied system,
along with the BOS components, should be accurately described,
and the EoL should be integrated in the study and well dened in
light of their high inuence on the results.
Most of the studies only examine energy-related indicators and
GWP, but in order to avoid impact transfers a more exhaustive

S. Gerbinet et al. / Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 38 (2014) 747753

impact assessment methodology should be used. When this type

of methodology is used, the most up-to-date one should be chosen
and if normalization is performed, the result should also be
provided without this step accordingly to LCA international
standard such as the ISO standards14040 and 14044 [4,5] and
the ILCD handbook [48].
Further LCA on PVs should be made because their environmental impacts are expected to decrease: due to further improvements such as higher cell efciency, reduction in energy
consumption during the modules production, panels recycling,
etc. Moreover, the impact of the intermittency of electricity
production by PVs should be included in future studies in order
to compare with other electricity sources. New PV types such as
organic panels should also be examined.
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